Nosocomial bacteriuria in patients with indwelling catheter after radical retropubic prostatectomy for prostate cancer.

Introduction: Patients with prolonged catheter drainage following pelvic surgery are at increased risk for bacteriuria that may have an impact on the clinical course. Materials and Methods: We retrieved all urine analyses from 148 consecutive patients that underwent open retropubic radical prostatectomy at our institution in 2002. The following data were generated: number of bacteriuria with day of onset, used antibiotics, microbiological analysis, resistogram, day of catheter removal and clinical postoperative course. Results: 44.6% of the investigated patients presented with bacteriuria. The highest incidence of bacteriuria was between day 13–15 (40.4%). The most common bacteria detected over the hospital stay were Staphylococcus spp. (24.3%). The most common used antibiotic was trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (44.6%). The highest susceptibility was found for levofloxacin (62.4%). No difference in time period of catheter drainage was noticeable in patients with bacteriuria compared to patients without bacteriuria. Conclusions: Bacteriuria is common after radical prostatectomy. To minor the risk of complications related to bacterial infection, the catheter should be removed 7–10 days after surgery. In case of the necessity of longer catheter drainage, an empiric antibiotic therapy seems rational.